Who knew that the latest sexually transmitted disease to join the list would be Ebola?! Oh, so now you wanna hear more…! Let’s get some perspective. The current outbreak of Ebola has to date infected some 6,500 people in West Africa. Of these people, just over 3,00o children, women and men have died. A staggering 25%-90% of those infected will be dead within weeks, depending on where it is...
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Herpes is the ammunition many of the abstinence-only advocates and sex-unfriendly preachers use when trying to explain why condoms are not the answer. They are in general very much mistaken, but when it comes to herpes*, there is something to be noted about condom use. Condoms are well studied and proven to offer a very high level of protection for sexually transmitted infections (STIs) transferred in...
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A long time ago, before the term HIV clouded our sexual intentions, before the 60’s changed the way we were allowed to behave sexually, even before penicillin was mistakenly discovered, there was one disease that was so ferocious and unspeakable it’s hundred different names were all but whispered. Syphilis, then known as the sovereign of all the venereal diseases, was the most debilitating. To add insult...
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Venereal Disease (VD) was the term commonly used in the past for Sexually Transmitted Diseases or Infections (STDs or STIs), especially syphilis and gonorrhea. Some say that the word venereal comes from Venus, the Roman goddess of love, and that is why STDs were also nicknamed Venus’ Curse. This is partially correct; venereal comes from the Latin ‘venereus’ meaning of sexual love which is taken from that...
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Although there are some external signs of syphilis (the initial ulcer, a rash and late signs of advanced disease), not everyone has obvious signs so care must be taken to avoid contact between genitals and body fluids until sexual partners have been tested and shown to be negative. Wearing a condom during genital or anal intercourse and a dam during cunnilingus offers the best protection available. Avoid...
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